Govinda Chandra Mishra

Govinda Chandra Mishra was the first freedom fighter of Odisha to come in contact with Gandhi in Sabarmati Ashram. He was born in Dasapalla state in 1888 where his father Baidyanath Mishra and mother Kamala Devi had migrated from Nayagarh before his birth. Both of them died when Govinda was a child. He was therefore looked after and brought up by his uncle who could educate him up to the fifth standard in the village school. But with a scholarship of one rupee per month, he could complete his minor class and thereafter came to Cuttack to take admission in Mission school. He continued his studies with financial assistance from the king of Kanika and scholarships from the king of Nayagarh besides generous help from a friend. There he came in contact with many political leaders who were interested to join the freedom struggle. He also formed a society called the ‘Secret Party’ along with four other friends to discuss the freedom movement and dedicate their lives to the nation.

In 1914, the Kandhs of Dasapalla launched a protest movement against the oppression of the king which was cruelly suppressed by the state with the assistance of the British government. Govinda took an active part in the movement for which he was kept under house arrest and was asked to give witness against the rebels which he refused. He managed to escape from Dasapalla to Cuttack, but the king issued a warrant against him. He therefore secretly escaped to Calcutta and from there went to Santiniketan to stay with Rabindra Nath Tagore and C.F. Andrews who advised him to meet Mahatma Gandhi in Sabarmati Ashram and stay with him. He, therefore, went to Sabarmati Ashram in 1918 and impressed Gandhi with his commitment to the nation who asked him to stay with him and get involved in the day-to-day work of Ashram. For all practical purposes, he was a bodyguard of Gandhi.